Introducing The “Blighties”

As some of you might have noticed I have spent a considerable amount of bandwidth this week making light of the development-induced blight that plagues north Brooklyn. There are a number of reasons for this, but to give you a short list:

1. Each and every derelict construction site is a testament to what happens when bad policy-making, easy credit and greed meet with farcical enforcement by the agencies deemed to serve the public interest and safety. Yes, I am talking to you Department of Buildings.

2. A great number of these sites were once places of employment for some, homes to others. Now they’re rubbish-infested wastelands.

3. While the intended effort (ostensibly) of the rezoning in north Brooklyn was to improve the quality of life here the actual effect has been quite the opposite. I suppose there have been winners (like people whose budget for rental property exceeds the per capita income for a family of four here— the last time I checked Greenpoint was hovering around $30,000 a year), but this community as a whole is not one of them. We will shouldering the consequences of their  malfeasance for a very, VERY long time.

4. I have seen my quality of life substantially degraded in the last 2-3 years as a result of points #1 and #2.

Suffice it to say I have become a bit of a connoisseur of development-induced crap heaps over the years. And for this reason I have elected 218 North 9 Street  to receive New York Shitty’s first ever Blighty award. What does it take to get a “Blighty” you ask? Well, I haven’t determined the criteria just yet but this site will be used as a benchmark!

Three indicators of a good piece of developer blight can be seen in the above photograph:

1. A for sale/for rent sign on an adjacent property.
2. Lots of concertina wire.
3. Plenty of graffiti and street art on the fence.

Not to suggest the latter most point is a negative. I think this bunny is cute.

This pile of garbage not so much.

Oh look, part of the fence is down! Let’s see what’s inside!

A pile of rubbish, a busted up toilet…

AND MORE RUBBISH!

Congratulations 218 North 9 Street on receiving the first, but certainly not last, New York Shitty Blightie Award! Given the tough times we’re in nowadays— and all the developer blight that has come with it— methinks I will have to ask my good friend Hard Hat Hannah to come out of retirement and lend me a hand.

To be continued.

Miss Heather